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TesdorfDesign Architecture

Welcome to TesdorfDesign Architecture

This is a site dedicated to design, architects and architecture and the understanding of the World around us. This is a centre for discovering the best information on design and architecture that the Internet has to offer.

Visit "The Buildings" to refer to the six-part "DATABASE OF WORLD ARCHITECTURE".

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Chapels in The Church of the Monastery of La Tourette, in France, by le Corbusier.

Interior of the Church of Saint Mark at Bjorkhagen, Stockholm, Sweden, by Sigurd Lewerentz

Check out the brief "Synopsis of the History of Architecture" in the Western World that you can find below here.

THE HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE IN THE WEST.

A Brief Synopsis of Architectural History.

This is a very short history of architecture in the Western world, from prehistoric to modern times. The history includes no information about the wide variation and extensive parallel history of architecture in Russia, Korea, China, Tibet, Japan, Vietnam, Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Indian sub-Continent, Iran, the Arab World, Sub-Saharan Africa, Brazil, Peru, Mexico and Polynesia. This is a view from the Western World. Architecture is an art and Architectural styles overlap and do not start and stop at precise times, and the dates listed here are quite approximate and vary from region to region.

Architecture in Prehistoric Times

Before recorded history, humans constructed stone circles, megaliths, inhabited and decorated caves and created temporary timber dwelling structures and villages.

Mesopotamian Architecture 4,000 BC to 400 BC.

In the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates and Persia, successive Empires constructed monumental brick and stone fortified Cities, Temples, and Mortuaries. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were one of the Wonders of the Ancient World. The glorious architecture of Persepolis was swept aside by Alexander the Great's invasion.

Ancient Egyptian Architecturre 3,500 BC to 900 BC

In ancient Egypt, powerful Pharonic dynasties constructed monumental Pyramids, Temples, Mortuaries and Shrines. Much Pharaonic architecture was for the glorification of the Dead. The Great Pyramid remains the greatest building volume in the World.

Classical Greek Architecture 800 BC to 146 AD

From the rise of the ancient Greek City States, Greek Architects constructed finely conceived Classical stone Temples, Stadia, Necopoles, Theatres,and Palaces. The refinements of Greek architectural proportion and detail have never been surpassed. The influence of Greek architecture lasted 2,000 years in the West.

Roman Architecture 146 BC to 400 AD

After the fall of ancient Greece to the Roman Empire, the Romans adopted and further developed the Classical Style. They built brick & stone Temples, Triumphal Arches, Aqueducts, Stadia, Amphitheatres, Basilicas, Theatres, Palaces and Bridges, in great Cities connected by road networks. The organization of Roman Cities rivalled modern cities and their services in its complexity.

Early Christian Architecture 375 AD to 800 AD

European architecture moved on from the Roman Era and developed the Roman basilica form and Classical circular temple form to create the early Cristian Churches Roman mosaic work was continued to decorate the interiors of these churches.

Byzantine Architecture 375 to 800 AD

The Eastern Roman Empire developed into the Byzantine Empire which developed unique domed Crurches utilizing the Late Roman pendentive support for the domes. These construction methods made possible very large unobstructed interior spaces. Mosaic decoration was highly developed in these buildings.

Romanesque Architecture 500 to 1200 AD

In post-Roman Western Europe a style based on the Roman arcaded structure developed into Romanesque architecture with Roman semi-circular rounded arches. This style was very prominent in Germany. In Italy it lingered far into the Gothic era.

Gothic Architecture 1100 to 1450 AD

Innovative Mediaeval architects created the pointed arch under Islamic influence to free up the vaulting methods used in the great cathedrals of Europe. In the Gothic cathedral, large stained-glass panels filled huge windows, which lit and coloured the interior Gothic architecture was only grudgingly used in Italy. In France, daringly sparse construction was pushed to the point of structural collapse in the pursuit of impressive lightness.

Renaissance Architecture 1450 to 1700 AD

The fall of Byzantium and the diaspora of knowledge and scholars led to a return to classical ideals. The Renaissance architects studied the Roman and Greek World of architecture. This style spread from Portugal to Poland and was exported to the New World and Asia by Colonists.

Mannerist Architecture 1550 to 1650 AD

Mannerist Architecture was a rebellion against the strict replication of Classical Architecture. A chief proponent was Michelangelo and his work led on to the Baroque Era. It was found in Palaces, Academic Buildings and Churches where it gave a new freedom of expression to space..

Baroque Architecture 1600 to 1830 AD

Baroque style was characterised by flowing lines and spaces, lightness, opulence and dramatic churches and palaces with dynamic plans and extravagant ornamentation and colours. The movement began in Italy and Spain and spread over all Europe. In Austria and South Germany it achieved singular success. Again this style was exported to the New World and Asia by Colonists and the Jesuits.

Rococo Architecture 1650 to 1790 AD

The Rococo style was a further development of the Baroque Style and was greatly utilized in Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe as far as Ruissia. Much elaborate decoration and extravagant sweeping curves were added to buildings distinguished by effects of lightness and joy.

American Colonial Architecture 1600 to 1780 AD
European Colonists settled in the New World, in both North and South America. The architects borrowed ideas from their homelands to create their own local styles of architecture.

Georgian Architecture 1720 to 1800 AD

Georgian was an English variant of Renaissance architecture. It was exported to English Colonies including Australia, India and the American Colonies. The style created distinguished and orderly Houses, Churches and Public Buildings of all sorts. It facilitated large scale town-planning.

Neoclassical Architecture 1730 AD to 1925

In England and Germany particularly there was a renewed interest in ideas of the Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. It inspired a return to the Classical forms in Europe, Russia and the United States.

Greek Revival Architecture 1790 to 1850 AD

Greek Revival architecture was an extension of the Neoclassical architecture which was sparked by archaeological discoveries in the field of Earlier Classical Greek architecture. The style was used in Antebellum homes in the American South. It was very popular also in Scotland.

Neo-Gothic Architecture 1780 AD to 1930

In the Romantic Era Mediaeval Gothic ideas were re-introduced for a new range of building types like Universities, Railway Stations, Parliaments, Town Halls, and Industrial projects. In the Early twentieth century, medieval Gothic ideas were applied to the surface of tall modern skyscrapers.

Victorian Architecture 1840 to 1900

Industrialization brought innovations in architecture and transport. The Victorian style include Gothic Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne, Neo-Byzantine, Neo-Romanesque and French Second Empire styles The style change was assisted by the use of new materials like steel, iron, large span glass, concrete and generally cheaper manufacturing techniques.

Arts and Crafts Movement in Architecture 1860 to 1900

The Arts and Crafts was a late 19th-century philosophical development against the forces of industrialization. The Arts and Crafts movement wanted to return to earlier simpler times. It revived interest in handicrafts and wanted a connection with the environment. It brought a new integration with painting and mosaic decoration. The Craftsman Bungalow style was an American development of this movement.

Art Nouveau Architecture 1890 to 1914

Art Nouveau was first expressed in France by fabrics and graphic design. The style spread to architecture and furniture in the 1890s and was disseminated from France across Europe. Art Nouveau buildings often have flowing ornamentation and free asymmetrical plans. In Spain, architect Antonio Gaudi was inspired by plant-like forms.

Beaux Arts Architecture 1895 to 1925

Beaux Arts Classicism was an Academically inspired development in architecture. Beaux Arts architecture is characterized by order, symmetry, and staid design. It was used for institutions seeking grandiosity and impressive ornamentation.

Art Deco Architecture 1920 to 1940

Art Deco Architecture was a graphics inspired style devekoping out the Bauhaus style. Bold patterns and soaring lines created dramatic effects in the Jazz-Age. Distinctive example are seen in Miami Beach.

20th Century Architecture 1900 to 2000

The Twentieth Century saw dramatic changes in materials, industrialization and astonishing diversity of function. Building Processes were further industrialised to replace work forces reduced by Wars. Twentieth century trends included Modernism and the Bauhaus school, Later Post-World-War-II developments included Brutalism, Deconstructionism, and Post-Modernism.

21st Century Architecture

The Twenty-First Century saw the crisis-inspired styles of Deconstructivism, Formalism, Structuralism, and Postmodernism continue to develope. The Century introduced to architecture an increased emphasis on energy-sustainable design concepts. There was an increase in cutting-edge architectural thought in Japan, South Korea, and China.

The Museum of History at Ningbo, in China, designed by Architect Wang Shu.

Interior of the Pantheon in Rome, Italy, Architect Apollodorus of Damascus

Seminary at Hartford Connecticut, United States of America, by Richard Meier.